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Gardener

Employer
National Trust
Location
Northumberland
Salary
£19,349 per annum (pro rata)
Closing date
10 Feb 2019

Job Details

If you want a career in Gardening, we can offer you some of the most beautiful outdoor spaces in the UK to work in as well as one of the largest plant collections in Europe.

This role is based on annualised hours, where the amount of hours you work each month may vary, however your salary will be paid in 12 equal instalments over the year.

For further information on the site or the role, please contact Gwen Potter, Countryside Manager gwen.potter@nationaltrust.org.uk. For further information about the National Trust visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk

www.nationaltrust.org.uk

What it's like to work here

Lindisfarne Castle Garden is a gem of a coastal walled garden. During his renovation of Lindisfarne Castle, Sir Edwin Lutyens brought his friend and collaborator Gertrude Jekyll to Holy Island in the spring of 1905 and she produced two plans for the walled enclosure north of the Castle which had once been a kitchen garden used by the resident soldiers. By 1911, Jekyll’s flower garden plan was finally planted. The garden was designed to flower during the late summer to fit with the main visitor season, which was when private guests were on holiday.

Among the seeds planted were Calendula, ‘Godetia’, Chrysanthemum ‘Coronarium’, Delphinium “Belladona”, Helianthus, and Stachys ‘Byzantia’ – many of which are still visible in the garden today. By the 1970s the garden had fallen into disrepair, but was restored in the late 1990s. Jekyll’s 1911 planting plan is still largely adhered to, so the best time to see the garden and its array of incredible scents and colours remains July, August, and September.

The garden is never static, though – it was the inspiration for an art project at the castle in 2018 and we are re-establishing the rose border in 2019., There are some corners of the garden requiring alternative plantings in such a harsh environment, whilst other areas are 'blank' and require a creative eye. Our fantastic volunteer team include people from across Northumberland, and you will be responsible for their recruitment, induction, welfare and management.

The castle attracts around 80,000 visitors per year and is part of a wider portfolio of coastal properties including Lindisfarne Castle; Farne Islands; Dunstanburgh & Newton Coast; various smaller sections of dune and the inland sites at Ros Hill and St Cuthbert’s Cave. The Northumberland Coast countryside includes many fantastic habitats and wildlife – even in and around the garden, sightings include shorebirds, wetland birds, raptors, owls and grassland birds as well as grassland and dune flora.

Beside the coast ranger team, the wider team includes the castle team, retail teams at Seahouses and Lindisfarne and our visitor experience & membership team. Part of your role will be to catch up regularly and spend time with the castle team.

What you'll be doing

Working as part of the Lindisfarne Castle, Northumberland Coast & Farne Islands portfolio property team, you will manage the stunning garden at Lindisfarne Castle. The role will involve working on a part time basis (540 hours pro rata), leading a team of volunteers to maintain the garden. This walled garden was includes rose beds, summer annuals and perennials, a herb garden and a small number of fruit trees.

You will carry out garden tasks such as cutting, pruning, planting, lifting and composting but will also manage volunteers, order plants and other garden tools and equipment as agreed with your line manager, work with the castle team and attend wider team meetings as required.

The bulk of your work time in the garden will be from March to October, though you may also be working a small number of days outside this period. You will be based at Lindisfarne Castle and there is time allocated into annual hours to ensure you are able to catch up with the castle team and complete necessary training, planning, garden managment meetings and development. You will need to be able to travel to Low Newton on occasion from Lindisfarne. You will also need to travel to training when required in relation to health and safety, volunteer management, fundraising, engaging visitors and occasionally attend other meetings throughout the region or the UK. You will enable everyone to feel welcome and to have outstanding and inspirational experiences of our conservation work, and you will have experience of leading volunteers. The role will involve engagement with volunteers and visitors on a daily basis, including fundraising as you will be enabling visitors to experience and understand and the garden and wider coast, gaining supporters for the work we do.

The role may include require weekend, evening, early morning and bank holiday work and the work is based around the tides on Lindisfarne. Occasionally situations may arise that require the post holder to perform other duties or tasks as may be reasonably requested by the Trust including work with the wider property on the Northumberland Coast.

Who we're looking for

To be successful in this role you should be able to demonstrate the below:

  • Trained as a professional gardener/horticulturalist with a good level of practical experience.
  • RHS Level 2 or equivalent.
  • Have proven practical gardening/horticulture experience, as well as a strong knowledge of plants
  • Confidence to participate in garden activities and events

The package

Looking after you

  • Health cash plan – from as little as £2.81 per month for you and your dependents
  • Pension contribution match up to 10%
  • EAP and proactive Health and Wellbeing
  • Discounted gym membership

Looking after your career

  • Grow your career through professional training courses across the Trust
  • Develop your skills with an internal secondment
  • Pay review linked to values and behaviours, commitment to progression
  • Income protection due to illness

Unique to Us

  • Work in some of the most beautiful, iconic and unique locations in the UK
  • Free entry to NT properties for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
  • 20% off in our retail and catering outlets
  • Discount up to 35% off a National Trust holiday cottage booking

 

Company

There's no other organisation like the National Trust. No other organisation that brings such an amazing variety of places and spaces to life.

We are a charity founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Canon Hardwicke Rawnsley, three people who saw the importance of our nation’s heritage and open spaces, and wanted to protect them for everyone to enjoy. More than a century after we were founded, our values are still at the heart of everything we do. And we do a lot more than you might think. 

We welcome some 22.5 million visitors, from all ages and backgrounds, every year. We care for historic houses, gardens, mills, forests, castles, miles of coastline, islands, holiday cottages, pubs and inns, whole villages and even a goldmine. We also run a huge retail chain, a multi-million pound food and beverage business and much, much more. And we do all of this so that everyone can enjoy and make the most of the green spaces and beautiful places that England, Wales and Northern Ireland has to offer. 

The National Trust is described by its employee gardeners as “dynamic, supportive, inquisitive and fun”, where its beautiful places “lift your spirits naturally” and “somewhere you can expand new skills”. The organisation is currently recruiting for a number of gardening roles. 

Read more in our latest articles:

What makes the National Trust a special place to work?

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